A Russian-based Indian businessman has secured £1.7m in Scottish public money to re-open the former Pinneys fish-processing plant in Annan.

Entrepreneur Keshav Bhagat has pledged to create 120 jobs and invest £9m in the site, which closed last year in what was seen as a major economic blow for the south of Scotland.

Mr Bhagat, 67, is currently based in Russia’s economically troubled exclave of Kaliningrad where foreign investors until recently could secure substantial tax breaks and support.

His new business is a newly formed UK limited company called Bhagat Holdings and will receive its £1.7 million in a regional selective assistance grant from jobs quango Scottish Enterprise.

The Pinneys factory was sold to Young’s a decade ago and mostly processed Scottish salmon, including for Marks and Spencers ready meals.

Speaking from the Pinneys’ site, Rural Economy Secretary Fergus Ewing said: “I’m delighted that an international company like Bhagat Holdings has chosen to invest in Scotland, with the immediate creation of a significant number of jobs, which will make a real difference to local people and the local economy.

“When Young’s closed last summer, I said that we would leave no stone unturned and we would keep working to find a solution and an alternative use for this site. That hard work has now paid off and it is Annan and the local community and families who will benefit.”

Some 450 people lost their jobs last year when Pinneys closed.

Mr Bhagat owns at least 75 per cent of Bhagat Holdings, which was incorporated in England last year. His main company is Russian-registered OOO Atlantis.